Manchester trustee honored with service award

Eugene F. Roop, a member of the Manchester University Board of Trustees, was presented on Sunday with the Manchester University Church-University Service Award at the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference in Tampa, Fla.

The award was presented by MU President Dave McFadden and Walt Wiltschek, campus pastor.

“Eugene F. Roop has perhaps been for the Church of the Brethren what the train conductor was for the Polar Express: someone who has kept everything pointed in the right direction and on track and helping a lot of people in their belief along the way,” the citation said.

The Anderson, Ind., resident is best known in the church for his 15-year tenure as president of Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind., a position from which he retired in 2007, and for his biblical scholarship and various commentaries and other publications.

An ordained minister, Roop has pastored congregations in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Indiana, and served on a variety of church agency and community-related boards.

He holds a doctorate from Claremont Graduate University, a Master of Divinity from Bethany and a bachelor of science from Manchester as part of the Class of 1964. He was also awarded an honorary doctorate from Manchester in 2001.

The Manchester alumnus has been a dedicated member of its Board of Trustees, part of a significant Church of the Brethren presence on the board. He helped maintain healthy ties between Manchester and the seminary while he was at the Bethany helm, and he continues to be an ambassador for his alma mater.

This year, he and his wife established the Eugene F. and Delora A. Roop Endowed Fund that will help Manchester bring in speakers, programs and other initiatives that lift up Manchester’s Brethren heritage and keep those connections vital and strong.

Manchester University, with campuses in North Manchester and Fort Wayne, Ind., offers more than 60 areas of academic study to nearly 1,500 students in undergraduate programs, a Master of Athletic Training and a four-year professional Doctor of Pharmacy. Learn more about the private, northern Indiana school grounded in the values and traditions of the Church of the Brethren at www.manchester.edu.